New Swiftkey 3 removes the need for spacebar

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Swiftkey has announced the launch of a new version of Swiftkey, the popular Android keyboard, that promises to make typing on the go even easier.

The crux of the new app, Swiftkey 3, now compensates for when you don't hit the space key, automatically inserting spaces and correcting words.

"People like software that turns their gibberish into words," Ben Medlock, CTO of the company, told Pocket-lint over breakfast.

But the app doesn't just add a space between common mistakes like "SanFrancisco" but works behind the scenes to figure out what you are saying even if you've spelt it wrong and forgotten the space as well. The new software is able to correct three words back and isn't just a case of auto correction inserting spaces.

"The app works out where the spaces should go and works out the spelling mistakes. It will insert the words as you type, allowing users to forget the age old problem of missing spaces between words," explains Medlock. "For the sloppy typists, this is going to be a great new feature."

Aside from the new "magic" tech, the keyboard has also had an overhaul. And the space bar is actually bigger even though you don't need to use it as much.

"The space bar being bigger is the wonderful irony of us being beholden to our user community as well as trying to educate them," says Medlock. "We’ve bascially simplified things. Following feedback the space bar is now longer, and we’ve added a single punctuation key."

New features are combined with a new look too: "We went through a number of iterations of the keyboard design, but we realised something simple and sophisticated is just going to connect better with the way Android is going and what people use."

The VIP testing starts soon, but there is no official date for release. Those who sign up to the VIP testing phase will be able to use the software for two months before being asked to kindly buy the app.